The amount of minorities who own businesses grew in recent years at a rate of two or more times the national average according to a United States Census Bureau poll released on Thursday. The poll showed that African Americans owned 1.2 million businesses, an increase of 45 percent, or more than 4 times the national growth rate. USA Today asserts the Census Bureau survey “is closely watched by marketers, economists, politicians and others for clues about shifts in what has become the USA’s fastest growing small business sector.”

Earl Graves founder of Black Enterprise Magazine asserts that many minorities would rather start a small business than go to work for a large company where major layoff’s often occur. He asserts he has seen a trend where many African American students start a small business out of school instead of joining a large company.
This trend makes sense to many GOP leaders who have found increased numbers of African Americans interested in the party. A Gallup poll of minority political opinions showed that of those African Americans who vote GOP, the majority are under age 50. The Boston Globe says this is “a generational shift that could be an opportunity for Republicans and a headache for Democrats.” This is a headache for Democrats because the emphasis that was present for many older African Americans who vividly remember the civil rights movement is shifting to an emphasis on entrepreneurship and opportunity.

Jeffery M. Jones, who administered the Gallup Poll said it is too early to tell whether the increase will represent a long term trend. However, many young African Americans such as Adam Hunter, a first year law student at Howard University, interviewed by the Boston Globe says “My father and I are not that different in ideology, but if you look at the time we grew up in that makes us different.” This news is making the Republican Party both hopeful for and more committed to what African Americans might bring to business and politics in the future.

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http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/
articles/2005/08/22/more_young_blacks_ready_to_embrace_gop/